Reading apparatus

ABSTRACT

According to one embodiment, a reading apparatus includes a shielding body, an antenna, and a reader and writer. The shielding body is formed in a box shape with an upper opening, to place an accommodating body and to shield radio waves. The antenna is provided in the shielding body to receive information from an RFID tag attached to a product that is passing through the opening. The reader and writer is connected to the antenna to read information of the product from the information received by the antenna.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority fromJapanese Patent Application No. P2018-020418, filed on Feb. 7, 2018, theentire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

Embodiments described herein relate generally to a reading apparatus.

BACKGROUND

In the related art, a reading apparatus is known that reads productinformation from an RFID tag attached to a product and performs salesregistration and checkout processing based on the product information.For example, an apparatus is proposed that collectively reads productinformation by placing products or a shopping basket that holds productson an upper surface of a checkout counter in which a planar antenna isembedded.

Recently, a shop is also known that employs a sales form in which areading apparatus called a self-checkout apparatus, a self-checkoutpoint-of-sales (POS) apparatus, or a self-registration apparatus isprovided for a customer himself or herself to perform sales registrationand checkout processing of products to be purchased. Therefore, when acustomer himself or herself performs sales registration and checkoutprocessing, the use of a reading apparatus that reads a plurality ofRFID tags attached to products using an RFID reader and writer throughan antenna can also be considered.

However, in this reading apparatus, after the completion of checkoutprocessing, operations of taking out the shopping basket from theapparatus, taking out the products from the shopping basket, and thenrepacking the products with an accommodating body such as a carrier bagor a basket are necessary.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a readingapparatus according to a first embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the readingapparatus;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a method of using the readingapparatus;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a readingapparatus according to a second embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a readingapparatus according to a third embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a readingapparatus according to a fourth embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a readingapparatus according to a fifth embodiment; and

FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a readingapparatus according to a sixth embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An exemplary embodiment provides a reading apparatus that reads an RFIDtag and can perform sales registration and the accommodation in anaccommodating body simultaneously.

In general, according to one embodiment, a reading apparatus includes ashielding body, an antenna, and a reader and writer. The shielding bodyis formed in a box shape with an upper opening to place an accommodatingbody and to shield radio waves. The antenna is provided in the shieldingbody to receive information from an RFID tag attached to a product thatis passing through the opening. The reader and writer is connected tothe antenna to read information of the product from the informationreceived by the antenna.

First Embodiment

Hereinafter, a reading apparatus 1 according to a first embodiment willbe described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. FIG. 1 is a perspectiveview illustrating a configuration of the reading apparatus 1 accordingto the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating theconfiguration of the reading apparatus 1. FIG. 3 is a flowchartillustrating a method of using the reading apparatus 1.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the reading apparatus 1 includes a main body11 and a terminal 12. The reading apparatus 1 reads an RFID tag 200 of aproduct 100 by the main body 11 and performs sales registration andcheckout processing based on the information of the RFID tag 200 read bythe terminal 12. In addition, in the reading apparatus 1, when the RFIDtag 200 is read by the main body 11, the product 100 with the RFID tag200 attached thereto can be accommodated in an accommodating body 300provided in the main body 11. The reading apparatus 1 is used as, forexample, a self-checkout point-of-sales (POS) apparatus that allows acustomer himself or herself to perform sales registration and checkoutprocessing.

Here, when the reading apparatus 1 is provided in a shop such as aconvenience store, the product 100 is an article that is sold in thestore. In addition, the RFID tag 200 is attached to the product 100 inadvance, and information of the product 100 is stored in a master of anexternal device connected to the terminal 12.

In addition, the RFID tag 200 stores the information of the product 100and is configured to be readable and writable. The RFID tag 200 is, forexample, a passive tag without a battery and is configured to beoperable in a UHF band.

In addition, the accommodating body 300 is, for example, a shopping bagincluding a handle portion that is so-called a carrier bag or anaccommodating case that is so-called my basket or a basket. In theembodiment, the accommodating body 300 is, for example, a polypropylenebag including a handle portion 301. Hereinafter, the accommodating body300 will be described as a bag 300. In the bag 300, a pair of holeportions 302 are provided in the handle portion 301.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the main body 11 includes a shielding body 21,a bag hanger 22, an antenna 23, and a fixing portion 24.

The shielding body 21 is formed in a rectangular box shape with an upperopening. The shielding body 21 shields, for example, a radio waveradiated from the antenna 23 or radio waves transmitted from the RFIDtag 200 outside the main body 11. In addition, the shielding body 21functions as an accommodating chamber that accommodates the product 100and the accommodating body 300.

Specifically, the shielding body 21 is formed in a rectangularcylindrical shape including four side walls 31 with a rectangular plateshape and a bottom wall 32 with a rectangular plate shape. The four sidewalls 31 are integrally assembled in a rectangular cylindrical shape.The four side walls 31 shield a radio wave. In addition, the bag hanger22 is provided on one side wall 31 of the shielding body 21.

Here, in the following description, the side wall 31 side where the baghanger 22 is provided is set as a back surface side of the main body 11,a side wall 31 side facing the side wall 31 is set as a front surfaceside of the main body 11, and other side surface 31 sides facing eachother are set as side surface sides of the main body 11. In addition, inthe following description, the side wall 31 on the front surface side ofthe main body 11 is set as a first side wall 311, the side wall 31 onthe back surface side of the main body 11 is set as a second side wall312, and the pair of side walls 31 on the side surface sides of the mainbody 11 are set as a pair of side walls 313.

The second side wall 312 is configured to be higher than the other sidewalls 311 and 313. In the second side wall 312, the bag hanger 22 isprovided at a position higher than upper ends of the other side walls311 and 313, and the fixing portion 24 is provided to be integrated withan upper surface thereof.

Upper ends of the first side wall 311 and the third side walls 313 andan inner surface of the second side wall 312 form the upper opening ofthe shielding body 21. Here, the upper opening of the shielding body 21has a dimension in which the bag 300, the product 100, and the bag 300with the product 100 accommodated therein can pass through the opening.

The bottom wall 32 closes lower ends of the four side walls 31. Thebottom wall 32 may be configured to be capable of shielding radio waves.

For example, the shielding body 21 has a configuration in which the fourside walls 31 and the bottom wall 32 are formed of a transparent resinmaterial and a transparent film or the like that shield radio waves isadhered to at least the four side walls 31. The shielding body 21 may beformed of, for example, a metal material that shields radio waves, ormay be formed using a mesh-like metal plate that shields radio waves orthe like at a specific frequency transmitted from the antenna 23 and theRFID tag 200. However, it is preferable that the shielding body 21 isconfigured such that the inside thereof is visually recognizable.

The bag hanger 22 is fixed to the second side wall 312 at a positionabove the opening of the shielding body 21. The bag hanger 22 is formedwith, for example, a pair of iron rods 22 a that are elongated in onedirection and can be disposed in the hole portions 302 of the bag 300.The pair of rods 22 a can be inserted into the pair of hole portions 302of the bag 300 at the same positions in the height direction. Inaddition, the pair of rods 22 a are disposed on the second side wall 312at a sufficiently large interval at which the product 100 can beinserted into the opening of the bag 300. Further, the pair of rods 22 ahold the bag 300, and the length thereof is appropriately set such thatwhen the bag 300 with the product 100 accommodated therein is taken outfrom the opening of the shielding body 21, the operation is notinterrupted.

The bag hanger 22 holds the bag 300 by being disposed in the holeportions 302 of the bag 300. In addition, the bag hanger 22 holds thebag 300 at a position where the height of the opening of the bag 300 isthe same as that of the opening of the shielding body 21 or at aposition where the height of the opening of the bag 300 is slightlyhigher or lower than that of the opening of the shielding body 21.

For example, the antenna 23 is provided in the opening of the shieldingbody 21 and on an inner surface of the shielding body 21. That is, theantenna 23 is provided at a position where the reading and writing ofthe RFID tag 200 of the product 100 can be performed when the product100 is moved from the opening of the shielding body 21 to the opening ofthe bag 300. For example, two antennas 23 are provided at positions ofthe upper ends of the pair of third side walls 313, respectively, thatare the same positions as the opening position of the bag 300 hung inthe bag hanger 22 or positions slightly higher than the openingposition. The antenna 23 is, for example, a planar patch antenna formedin a rectangular plate shape. The antenna 23 is connected to theterminal 12 through a coaxial cable 23 a. The antenna 23 radiates radiowaves toward the opening of the bag 300 of the shielding body 21 and theinside of the bag 300.

The fixing portion 24 disposes and fixes the terminal 12. For example,the fixing portion 24 is a plate-shaped member with one end provided atthe upper end of the second side wall 312, which extends toward thefirst side wall 311 side in a direction perpendicular to a main surfacedirection of the second side wall 312. The fixing portion 24 is notparticularly limited to this configuration and may have anotherconfiguration as long as the fixing portion 24 can fix the terminal 12.

The terminal 12 includes a reader and writer 41, a display portion 42,an operation portion 43, a card reader portion 44, a money receivingdevice 45, a printer 46, a communication portion 47, a storage portion48, and a controller 49.

The reader and writer 41 is electrically connected to the antenna 23through the coaxial cable 23 a. The reader and writer 41 has a functionof reading information of the RFID tag 200 through the antenna 23 and afunction of writing information on the RFID tag 200 through the antenna23. The reader and writer 41 may be provided in the main body 11 insteadof the terminal 12 and may be connected to the controller 49 through asignal line or the like.

The display portion 42 is, for example, a liquid crystal display. Thedisplay portion 42 displays, for example, information from the readerand writer 41, information of the storage portion 48, and theinformation of the product 100 that is stored in a master or the like ofan external terminal and provided through the communication portion 47.For example, the display portion 42 displays information regarding theproduct 100, information regarding settlement, and information regardingan input or an operation of the terminal.

The operation portion 43 is an input device through which an operator ofthe reading apparatus 1 inputs information such as an externalinstruction. The operation portion 43 is, for example, a touch panelprovided in the display portion 42. The operation portion 43 transmitsthe input information to the controller 49.

For example, the card reader portion 44 includes a first card readerportion 44 a that reads a non-contact IC card and a second card readerportion 44 b that reads a contact IC card, a magnetic card, or the like.The card reader portion 44 transmits the read card information to thecontroller 49. Here, examples of the card include a credit card, aprepaid card, and a card capable of payment of electronic money.

The money receiving device 45 processes money received from theoperator. For example, the money receiving device 45 is a so-calledautomatic change machine including a coin insertion port, a coindischarge port, a bill insertion port, and a bill discharge port. Themoney receiving device 45 is configured to transmit money information tothe controller 49.

The printer 46 outputs a receipt on which information of a settledproduct is printed. The printer 46 includes a receipt discharge port 46a for discharging the receipt.

The communication portion 47 is a communication interface that isconfigured to communicate with an external device. The communicationportion 47 transmits the product information acquired by the reader andwriter 41 to an external device and receives product information and thelike required for settlement.

The storage portion 48 stores a program executed by the controller 49,information of sales registration, information of checkout processing,and the like. For example, the storage portion 48 includes a read onlymemory (ROM) for storing a control program that stores a program or thelike and a random access memory (RAM) for storing data that temporarilystores information when the controller 49 executes a program.

The controller 49 is, for example, a central processing unit (CPU). Thecontroller 49 executes various controls and processing functions byexecuting programs stored in the storage portion 48. The controller 49is electrically connected to the reader and writer 41, the displayportion 42, the operation portion 43, the card reader portion 44, themoney receiving device 45, the printer 46, the communication portion 47,and the storage portion 48, and controls each component using programsstored in the storage portion 48. For example, the controller 49controls the reader and writer 41 such that the information of the RFIDtag 200 is read through the antenna 23 and information is written on theRFID tag 200. In addition, the controller 49 controls the displayportion 42, the card reader portion 44, the money receiving device 45,and the communication portion 47 to perform sales registration andcheckout processing.

Next, a method of using the reading apparatus 1 will be described withreference to a flowchart of FIG. 3.

The operator such as a customer operates the operation portion 43 bytouching a region for inputting the start of checkout processing that isdisplayed on the display portion 42 to input an instruction of the startof sales registration of the product 100 (Act 1). Next, the operatorhangs the bag 300 on the bag hanger 22 and widens the opening of the bag300. For example, at this time, the controller 49 may cause the displayportion 42 to display the hanging of the bag 300 on the bag hanger 22.

When the controller 49 receives information of the instruction of thestart of checkout processing from the operation portion 43, thecontroller 49 controls the reader and writer 41 (Act 2) to radiate theradio waves from the antenna 23 and to start the reading of the RFID tag200 (Act 3). When the operator moves the product 100 accommodated in theshopping basket to the bag 300, the reader and writer 41 reads theproduct information stored in the RFID tag 200, which is passing throughthe opening of the shielding body 21, through the antenna 23 (YES in Act3). The controller 49 queries database of the product 100 stored in themaster or the like of the external device about the information of theRFID tag 200 read by the reader and writer 41 through the communicationportion 47, receives information of the product 100 such as a productname or a price associated with the information of the RFID tag 200, anddisplays the information of the product 100 (Act 4). In addition, thecontroller 49 performs sales registration to store the information inthe storage portion 48, and controls the reader and writer 41 to write aregistration completion flag on the read RFID tag 200.

Here, the registration completion flag is information indicating thatthe product is settled, and is written to prevent the product from beingerroneously taken out from the shop without settlement. Whether or notthe registration completion flag is written is determined by the RFIDtag 200 being read at the gate installed at an entrance of the shop.When the RFID tag 200 on which the registration completion flag is notwritten is present, a warning is generated by a notification unit suchas a buzzer.

When the controller 49 does not read the RFID tag 200 (No in Act 3)after starting the reading of the RFID tag 200 (Act 3), the controller49 continuously controls the reader and writer 41 (Act 2). In addition,when the controller 49 fails to read the RFID tag 200 (No in Act 3)after starting the reading of the RFID tag 200 (Act 3), for example, thecontroller 49 may cause the display portion 42 to display a guide suchthat the product 100 is taken out of the bag 300 to pass through theopening of the shielding body 21 again, and may continuously control thereader and writer 41 (Act 2).

Next, the controller 49 checks whether or not sales registration endsfrom the operation portion 43 (Act 5). As a specific example, thecontroller 49 controls the display portion 42 and the operation portion43 to display a display for inputting an instruction of the end of salesregistration, and enables to operate the operation portion 43 in theregion. When the sales registration of all the products 100 to bepurchased does not end and the instruction of the end of salesregistration is not input (No in Act 5), the controller 49 returns toAct 2 and controls the reader and writer 41 again. After the end of thereading of the product 100, the operator takes out the next product 100from the shopping basket, and moves all the products 100 accommodated inthe shopping basket to the bag 300, and performs sales registration.

When the operator accommodates all the products 100 to be purchased inthe bag 300 and operates the operation portion 43, the controller 49receives the instruction of the end of sales registration (YES in Act5), ends sales registration, and starts checkout processing (Act 6). Asa specific example, the controller 49 stops the reader and writer 41 andcontrols the display portion 42 to display information such as names ora total price of the products 100 and a settlement method on the displayportion 42, and controls the operation portion 43 to enable to input asettlement method. In addition, the controller 49 controls the cardreader portion 44 or the money receiving device 45 based on thesettlement method selected by the operator by operating the operationportion 43 to enable checkout through card settlement or cash settlement(Act 7).

When checkout ends through card settlement or cash settlement (YES inAct 7), the controller 49 ends checkout processing (Act 8) and controlsthe display portion 42 to display information of the end of checkoutprocessing on the display portion 42. At this time, the controller 49controls the reader and writer 41 to write the registration completionflag on the RFID tag 200.

In addition, when checkout does not end (No in Act 7), the controller 49controls the display portion 42, the operation portion 43, the cardreader portion 44, and the money receiving device 45 to maintain a statewhere the settlement method is selectable.

According to the reading apparatus 1 having the above-describedconfiguration, the bag 300 that is an accommodating body accommodatingthe product 100 is accommodated in the shielding body 21, the functionof shielding radio waves is imparted to the shielding body 21, and theantenna 23 is provided in the opening of the upper end of the shieldingbody 21. With this configuration, when the product 100 having the RFIDtag 200 is put into the bag 300 in the shielding body 21, the RFID tag200 is read by the antenna 23. Therefore, the reading apparatus 1 canaccommodate the product 100 in the bag 300 while performing salesregistration. In addition, the reading apparatus 1 can be prevent theRFID tag 200 present outside the shielding body 21 from beingerroneously read and written.

With the reading apparatus 1 according to the embodiment, salesregistration and the accommodation of the product in the accommodatingbody 300, that is, the packing of the product with the bag 300 can besimultaneously performed.

Second Embodiment

Next, a reading apparatus 1A according to a second embodiment will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 4. Among components of the readingapparatus 1A according to the second embodiment, the same components asthose of the reading apparatus 1 according to the first embodimentdescribed above will be represented by the same reference numerals, andthe detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, the reading apparatus 1A includes a main body11A and the terminal 12. As illustrated in FIG. 4, the main body 11Aincludes a shielding body 21A, the bag hanger 22, the antenna 23, andthe fixing portion 24. That is, the configuration of the main body 11Ais different from that of the main body 11 according to the firstembodiment in the configuration of the shielding body 21A.

The shielding body 21A has a rectangular box shape with an upper openingand is configured to be capable of opening or closing a first side wall311A on the front surface side. As a specific example, in the shieldingbody 21A, the first side wall 311A includes a pair of side wall portions311 a and 311 a. This first side wall 311A has a so-called double-dooropening structure, and open or close the front surface side of theshielding body 21A. That is, in the shielding body 21A, the bag 300 asan accommodating body can pass through the front surface side of theshielding body 21A, that is, the bag 300 can be taken out from the frontsurface side of the shielding body 21A by opening the first side wall311A that is a part of the side walls, and the passage of the bag 300can be restricted by closing the first side wall 311A.

The length of the side wall portions 311 a in the width direction is setto be half of the distance between the pair of third side walls 313. Oneof the side wall portions 311 a is rotatably connected to an end portionon the front surface side of one third side wall 313 through a hingeportion. The other one of the side wall portions 311 a is rotatablyconnected to an end portion on the front surface side of the other thirdside wall 313 through a hinge portion. The hinge portion has a functionof rotatably holding the side wall portion 311 a with respect to thethird side wall 313 and includes a spring that biases the pair of sidewall portions 311 a in a closing direction and a damper that alleviatesthe rotation speed of the side wall portions 311 a or maintains a statewhere the side wall portions 311 a are open.

With the reading apparatus 1A having the above-described configuration,sales registration and the accommodation of the product in the bag 300,that is, the packing can be simultaneously performed as in theabove-described reading apparatus 1. Further, in the reading apparatus1A, since the front surface side of the shielding body 21A can be openedand closed, the operation of hanging the bag 300 on the bag hanger 22and the operation of taking out the bag 300 with the product 100accommodated therein after sales registration and checkout processingcan be easily performed, and the usability is high.

Third Embodiment

Next, a reading apparatus 1B according to a third embodiment will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 5. Among components of the readingapparatus 1B according to the third embodiment, the same components asthose of the reading apparatus 1 according to the first embodimentdescribed above will be represented by the same reference numerals, andthe detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, the reading apparatus 1B includes a main body11B and the terminal 12. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the main body 11Bincludes a shielding body 21B, the bag hanger 22, the antenna 23, andthe fixing portion 24. That is, the configuration of the main body 11Bis different from that of the main body 11 according to the firstembodiment in the configuration of the shielding body 21B.

The shielding body 21B has a rectangular box shape with an upperopening, and is configured to be capable of opening or closing a firstside wall 311B on the front surface side. As a specific example, thefirst side wall 311B is rotatably connected to an end portion on thefront surface side of the bottom wall 32 through a hinge portion.

The hinge portion has a function of rotatably holding the first sidewall 311B with regard to the bottom wall 32, and includes a spring thatbiases the first side wall 311B in a closing direction and a damper thatalleviates the rotation speed of the first side wall 311B or maintains astate where the first side wall 311B is open.

With the reading apparatus 1B having the above-described configuration,sales registration and the accommodation of the product in the bag 300,that is, the packing can be simultaneously performed as in theabove-described reading apparatuses 1 and 1A. Further, in the readingapparatus 1B, since the front surface side of the shielding body 21B canbe opened and closed, the operation of hanging the bag 300 on the baghanger 22 and the operation of taking out the bag 300 with the product100 accommodated therein after sales registration and checkoutprocessing can be easily performed, and the usability is high.

Fourth Embodiment

Next, a reading apparatus 1C according to a fourth embodiment will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 6. Among components of the readingapparatus 1C according to the fourth embodiment, the same components asthose of the reading apparatus 1 according to the first embodimentdescribed above will be represented by the same reference numerals, andthe detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As illustrated in FIG. 6, the reading apparatus 1C includes a main body11C and the terminal 12. As illustrated in FIG. 6, the main body 11Cincludes the shielding body 21, the bag hanger 22, three antennas 23,and the fixing portion 24. That is, the main body 11C is different fromthe main body 11 according to the first embodiment in the number ofantennas 23.

In the main body 11C, three antennas 23 are provided. Among the threeantennas 23, two antennas 23 are provided on the upper end of theshielding body 21 as in the case of the pair of antennas 23 of the mainbody 11. In addition, the remaining one antenna 23 is provided on thebottom wall 32. The antenna 23 provided on the bottom wall 32 may beconfigured to be capable of scanning the bottom wall 32 in a horizontaldirection such that the RFID tag 200 is readable over a wide range ofupper areas from the bottom wall 32.

With the reading apparatus 1C having the above-described configuration,sales registration and the accommodation of the product in the bag 300,that is, the packing can be simultaneously performed as in theabove-described reading apparatus 1. Further, by providing the antenna23 also on the bottom wall 32, the occurrence of read error of the RFIDtag 200 in the shielding body 21 can be reduced.

Fifth Embodiment

Next, a reading apparatus 1D according to a fifth embodiment will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 7. Among components of the readingapparatus 1D according to the fifth embodiment, the same components asthose of the reading apparatus 1 according to the first embodimentdescribed above will be represented by the same reference numerals, andthe detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As illustrated in FIG. 7, the reading apparatus 1D includes a main body11D and the terminal 12. As illustrated in FIG. 7, the main body 11Dincludes the shielding body 21, the bag hanger 22, the antenna 23, thefixing portion 24, and a buffer material 25. That is, the configurationof the main body 11D is different from that of the main body 11according to the first embodiment in that the buffer material 25 isincluded.

The buffer material 25 is provided on the upper surface of the bottomwall 32. The buffer material 25 covers the upper surface of the bottomwall 32, and absorbs impacts when the product 100 collides with thebottom wall 32 at the time of packing the product 100 with the bag 300.

With the reading apparatus 1D having the above-described configuration,sales registration and the accommodation of the product in the bag 300,that is, the packing can be simultaneously performed as in theabove-described reading apparatus 1. Further, by providing the buffermaterial 25 on the bottom wall 32, even when the operator erroneouslydrops the product 100 on the bottom wall 32, the buffer material 25 canprevent the product 100 from being damaged.

Sixth Embodiment

Next, a reading apparatus 1E according to a sixth embodiment will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 8. Among components of the readingapparatus 1E according to the sixth embodiment, the same components asthose of the reading apparatus 1 according to the first embodimentdescribed above will be represented by the same reference numerals, andthe detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As illustrated in FIG. 8, the reading apparatus 1E includes a main body11E and the terminal 12. As illustrated in FIG. 8, the main body 11Eincludes a shielding body 21E, the antenna 23, and the fixing portion24. That is, the configuration of the main body 11E is different fromthat of the main body 11 according to the first embodiment in that thebag hanger 22 is not included.

The shielding body 21E is formed in a rectangular box shape with anupper opening. In the shielding body 21E, the bag hanger 22 is notprovided. Therefore, the shielding body 21E includes an opening capableof taking out an accommodating case 300 called my basket or a basket asan accommodating body 300 therethrough. The shielding body 21E mayfurther include the bag hanger 22 such that the accommodating case 300and the bag 300 can be selectively used.

With the reading apparatus 1E having the above-described configuration,sales registration and the accommodation of the product in theaccommodating case 300 can be simultaneously performed as in theabove-described reading apparatus 1. Further, by configuring theaccommodating case 300 to be capable of being taken out, not only thebag 300 but also various accommodating bodies 300 that are brought bythe operator can be used.

While certain embodiments have been described, these embodiments havebeen presented by way of example only, and are not intended to limit thescope of the inventions. Indeed, the novel embodiments described hereinmay be embodied in a variety of other forms; furthermore, variousomissions, substitutions and changes in the form of the embodimentsdescribed herein may be made without departing from the spirit of theinventions. The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intendedto cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope andspirit of the inventions.

What is claimed is:
 1. A reading apparatus, comprising: a shielding body configured to shield radio waves formed in a box shape with an upper opening through which to place an accommodating body; an antenna provided in the shielding body to receive information from an RFID tag attached to a product that is passing through the opening; and a reader and writer connected to the antenna to read information of the RFID tag from the information received by the antenna.
 2. The reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a front wall of the shielding body is open such that the accommodating body is capable of passing through the front wall.
 3. The reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the accommodating body is a bag that accommodates the product, and the accommodating body includes a bag hanger that is disposed in the shielding body to hang the bag.
 4. The reading apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the accommodating body is an accommodating case that accommodates the product.
 5. The reading apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a buffer material on a bottom surface of the shielding body.
 6. The reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the shielding body has four side walls and a bottom wall.
 7. The reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the four side walls are made of a transparent material.
 8. The reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the four side walls are made of a radio wave shielding material.
 9. The reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the box shape is a rectangular box shape.
 10. A method for processing an RFID tag, comprising: radiating the RFID tag attached to a product passing through an opening in an upper portion of a shielding body configured to shield radio waves formed in a box shape; and receiving information from the RFID tag.
 11. The method according to claim 10, further comprising: reading product information from the RFID tag.
 12. The method according to claim 10, further comprising: writing registration completion information to the RFID tag.
 13. A self-checkout POS apparatus, comprising: a shielding body configured to shield radio waves formed in a box shape with an upper opening through which to place an accommodating body; an antenna provided in the shielding body to receive information from an RFID tag attached to a product that is passing through the opening; a reader and writer connected to the antenna to read information of the RFID tag from the information received by the antenna; and a printer for providing a receipt.
 14. The self-checkout POS apparatus according to claim 13, wherein a front wall of the shielding body is open such that the accommodating body is capable of passing through the front wall.
 15. The self-checkout POS apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the accommodating body is a bag that accommodates the product, and the accommodating body includes a bag hanger that is disposed in the shielding body to hang the bag.
 16. The self-checkout POS apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the accommodating body is an accommodating case that accommodates the product.
 17. The self-checkout POS apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising a buffer material on a bottom surface of the shielding body.
 18. The self-checkout POS apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the shielding body has four side walls and a bottom wall.
 19. The self-checkout POS apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the four side walls are made of a transparent material.
 20. The self-checkout POS apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising a display to show transactions and a card reader to facilitate processing payment. 